In a clearing only a hundred meters or so away was Joe.  Frank bolted towards him only to be grabbed by one of the officers, “Frank…”  

“That’s my brother – JOE!” he yelled trying to break away from the men.  

He saw his father cutting down Joe’s arms as he broke away from the officer.  As he got closer he saw why the officer had tried to stop him… tried to protect him.  

Joe was hurt bad…real bad.  

Deathly pale, Joe’s face was covered in blood and bruises and his back was a pulpy mess with insects crawling over him and buzzing around him.   

Their father gently lowered Joe down from the trees he was tied to and held him as Frank felt for a pulse. Even Joe’s wrists were ragged from being bound so tight – Frank breathed a quick sigh as he looked at his dad.  

“He’s alive but his pulse is very weak and erratic.”   

Frank could already hear the paramedics coming, and he pushed a lock of blond hair out of his brother’s face as his own eyes began to water.  “Hey little brother…are you there?  Please hold on, okay… no one’s ever going to hurt you like this again….I promise.”  

With that, he and his father moved back so the medics could work on Joe.  One of the paramedics looked up at Fenton.  

“He’s lost a lot of blood—”   

Before he could finish, Frank was already nodding, “I’ve given him blood before.”

* * *

Chet and Biff ran to help the paramedics carry the stretcher through the woods, while Phil and Tony went ahead with their flashlights to clear the path, with Sherlock beside them.

* * *

Ten minutes later, Joe was being placed in the ambulance.  Frank was distraught and wanted to ride with them, but the paramedics said that Dr. Blair should go with them and they needed the room to work on Joe.  

 “We’re taking him to Bayport Memorial,” they said as they started to close the door.  

Fenton saw Dr. Blair already in the ambulance and catching his eye he yelled out to him, “Take care of him… please!”  

The pleading note in his father’s voice was more then Frank could take, and he finally broke down crying as the stress of the last few hours finally caught up with him.  They had done all they could, and now the rest was up to the paramedics.   

“Here’s my keys,” Dr. Blair yelled out to Tony, “Take the Hardys in my car.  And Fenton….” Fenton looked away from Frank and back at the ambulance surprised to see the door still open.  He thought it was already closed. “I will.”  

For some reason this made the investigator feel much better, probably because he knew that the doctor had genuinely felt badly about what happened, and would do anything to make it up to them.   

He just hoped that it would be enough.…

* * *

Frank and Fenton sat together in the back seat as Tony navigated the back roads towards Bayport.  

He was following Chet’s car, as he was unfamiliar with this area.  The ambulance had lost them a while back, and they didn’t want to maintain the high speeds that would be required to keep up with it.  It would be just their luck if they had a car accident, and they knew Joe would never forgive himself if something happened to them because they were hurrying to see him.   

Frank had regained control now, but neither he nor his father let go of each other – it was the only comfort they had.

* * *

Chet dropped Phil and Biff off at the hospital with the Hardys and then left to pick up Mrs. Hardy and the girls.   

Sherlock lazily spread out on the back seat, oblivious to what a hero he was.  In fact when he got to the Hardys’ house, they had some wonderful treats set out to keep the pooch happy while he waited for Biff to pick him up there later.

* * *

Frank was pacing the waiting room.

 

“Frank, please sit down,” his father’s weary voice asked him for the upteenth time in the last two hours.  

They were waiting for news on Joe, and so far the only good news was the fact that they still needed Frank to donate blood to Joe when he got there.  

When he was taken into the room, Frank was shocked to see how bad his brother looked in the light.  It had been dark when they last saw him, but the hospital light illuminated every bump and bruise that Joe had received.  

He fought back the tears as he gingerly touched Joe’s bruised face.  He wanted desperately to comfort him but the IV’s prevented it…and he was actually afraid that he might hurt him if he did, anyway.  

So he just lay down in the bed next to Joe and watched as his blood left his arm and went into his kid brother.   

No matter how many times he did it, it never got any easier.  He bit back the despair as he thought; Joe is too young for the number of hospital trips he’s made.  

I’m not doing my job as his big brother… was his last thought as he nodded off.

* * *

An hour later he was back out in the waiting room – pacing.   

The weariness in his father’s voice caught his attention and he sat down.  As he looked around the waiting room, he wondered briefly if they should all consider buying monthly parking passes.  If it wasn’t Joe in here then it was usually him or his dad – STOP IT FRANK! he ordered himself.  

Think about other things… like how lucky you are to have such good friends that they would traipse anywhere at a moment’s notice to help you out – no matter how dangerous it might be.   

I don’t deserve friends like this, he thought as he glanced at each one of them individually.  

Biff, he thought, Joe’s best friend.  Only he had the foresight to bring the dog with them, and that in itself probably saved Joe from being dead in that tree.  Big, dependable Biff, he was always there…even if it were just for helping Joe kick his and Tony’s butt in basketball….Frank smiled at that thought.  

Chet, he looked over at the plump boy, his own best friend for almost forever.  Chet forgave Joe when Joe’s girlfriend, also Chet’s younger sister, Iola, was murdered when the Hardys’ van exploded – if only Joe could do that for himself, Frank thought sadly.  

Chet was always such a good sounding-board, and always seemed to say the right thing at the right time.  What would I do without Chet?  

Tony.  ‘Mr. Pizza’ was Joe’s nickname for the Italian youth, probably because Tony’s dad owned Mr. Pizza pizzeria, and Tony worked there as the Assistant Manager.  Not only did Tony always serve them the best pizzas ever, he was always there for them at the drop of a hat.  Tony was a solid friend who never ran into something on impulse and had been a good influence on Joe….  

Phil, Frank’s other best friend, and the one he shared most in common with – computers, was the quietest of the bunch but he could come to fire when occasion arose.  

Frank was thankful for the guys, especially tonight.  He decided that when Joe got out of the hospital they would throw a surprise party for their friends.  It would be hard to plan but they were worth it…  

Then Frank’s eyes came to rest on Callie Shaw and Vanessa Bender.  Both were beautiful, smart, courageous, and theirs.  

Callie had been Frank’s girlfriend forever, and he was sure he would marry her and they would have beautiful kids.  

Vanessa and Joe had only been going out for a short while, but she was good for Joe.  She helped him come out of his slump after Iola died, and for that Frank would be forever grateful.

* * *

Dr. Stephen Blair and another younger doctor came into the waiting room.  They both looked tired but Dr. Blair was smiling wearily.  

The younger doctor introduced himself, “I’m Dr. Warren, and I’ve been treating your son since he arrived.”  

Everyone tensed for what he was going to say. “Well, the good news is that with ample rest and no unforeseen complications, Joseph should be fine.”  Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.  

“However, he is still very sick.  He was in severe shock and suffering from hypothermia when he was admitted, as well as having lost a lot of blood.  I will say I find it amazing he’s made it this far, except to say he either has a strong will,” he smiled at the anxious faces, “or he’s just incredibly stubborn.”  

This brought smiles and a few comments as they thought about how pig-headed Joe could be.   

“He’s gotten a mild case of pneumonia and is on strong antibiotics to help fight the infection in his back, and to prevent any unforeseen complications arising from the incredible amount of insect bites he’s received on his torso.  Other then that, he has numerous cuts and abrasions and was moderately dehydrated.”  

Frank thought the list would never end, but it did, and a few minutes later he, his father and his mother went to see Joe.

* * *

Both Frank and his father had already seen Joe, so they were somewhat prepared, although Frank still heard a sharp intake of breath from his father; while his mother just put her hand over her mouth to keep from crying out.  

What has he done to my baby? she kept asking herself as her vision blurred.  She immediately sat beside Joe and took one of his pale hands into hers, saddened more when she saw there were even bandages on his wrists.  “My poor baby, momma is here.”  

Frank ached when he heard the tenderness in his mother’s voice.  But his heart actually broke when he saw his father…famous private investigator Fenton Hardy, lean over and kiss his youngest son’s forehead and then break down and cry like a baby.  

His mother moved away from Joe so Frank could sit beside him, and she engulfed her sobbing husband in her arms and held him while he cried.   

Fenton had seen Joe in a hospital bed countless times before…too many, in fact. But he had never seen Joe look so misused, and he was still in shock from seeing his baby boy hanging between two trees like a hunk of meat.  

Fenton Hardy felt like he had never been so close to losing Joe before as he had been today.   

And all because of brotherly love…brotherly responsibility.   

He had to know…pulling himself together…he had to know….  

“Frank.”   

Frank turned at the sound of his father’s voice.  He was relieved that he was no longer crying anymore, because it really scared him to see his father like that…and he did not scare easily.  

“I have to ask…would you….”  He never had the chance to finish his sentence, as Frank looked back at Joe lying so deathly still in the bed, and shook his head, sadly.  

“I know what you’re thinking…wondering.  I’ve been asking myself that same question, over and over again – how far would I go if Joe needed something….”  His voice was anguished and he knew that his parents were staring at him because he felt like their eyes were burning a hole in his back.  

“I love Joe….He’s my baby brother….I can’t explain it.  I would do anything to keep him safe and I would do anything to help him…but…” he stopped.  

“But?”  His mother asked this time, almost afraid for Frank to continue.  

“But Joe and I are nothing like Dr. Blair and Jack.  Would I die for Joe?  Yes.  Would I kill to protect Joe?  If it came down to life and death and I had no other choice… Yes,”  His eyes burned with intensity.  “Would I take an innocent family and toss them into the shredder for Joe?….No….See the difference between Jack and Joe, and me and Stephen, is that Joe cares, sometimes way too much.   

“Hell, do you know why he went with Jack today?  He didn’t tell me but I know why….” he looked down at his little brother, his expression soft and full of love, “to save us the pain.  

“The sooner he got this over with, the sooner we could learn to deal with it and move on.  Joe is a good person – the best I think I know.  So NO, if Joe ever asked me to do something that would hurt someone, I wouldn’t… because I would know…that it wasn’t really my brother asking.”  

He saw the relief on his parents’ faces.  At least he was able to put their minds at ease.  

“Frank?”  The voice was so soft that for a moment Frank thought he was hearing things.  

But as his dad and mom jumped up and ran to the side of the bed, Frank knew the voice was real.  He choked back tears, as it was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard.   

He saw Joe’s blue eyes looking up at him, and they still had a haunted look in them. “Hey baby brother, it’s me.  Mom and Dad are here too.”  Joe’s gaze flickered briefly to his parents and he tried to move.  

“Easy son, don’t move…you’ve been hurt, real bad.”  Fenton’s voice was soft as he gently stopped Joe from trying to sit up.  

It reminded Frank of the voice his father had used on a stray dog a long time ago, when it had been hit by a car and he was trying to help it.  As he thought about it, Frank realized that Joe had the same look in his eyes.  

It was the look of someone afraid to believe what they were seeing or hearing – afraid to feel safe.  

“Jack…” Joe tried to speak again.   

Frank put up his hand.  “It’s over, Joe.  Jack is back where he belongs.  Back where he can never hurt you again.”  

Joe tried to shake his head, but it was pounding too much, as he wanted to tell them that they were wrong.  

He would never be safe.

* * *

A week later Joe was released, with orders for strict bed rest.   

As Frank helped him into the house he was still very worried about his little brother.   

Joe was not the same happy-go-lucky, devil-may-care free spirit that they all knew and loved.  He just seemed to be very far away a lot of the time, and when Frank would ask him what was wrong, Joe would feign ignorance and insist nothing was wrong.  

But Frank knew differently.  Something had changed – there was something Joe was not telling them, and Frank knew it was eating Joe alive.  But Joe did not want to talk about it, and he knew his brother too well to know it was too early to push him.  

A few hours later, though, when Frank came flying out of his bed to the sound of his brother screaming in his room, he began to think that now was the perfect time to talk.   

He raced into his brother’s room as his father and mother stumbled out of their room.  

Joe was bathed in sweat and thrashing around in his bed, still screaming.  Frank tried to hold onto him but it took both him and his dad to get Joe under control.  

“Joe, baby, wake up!” his mother begged.  At the sound of her voice Joe’s eyes flew open but Frank saw he was still in the grips of his nightmare.  

“Get them off me!  Get them off me!”  Joe’s voice struck terror in Frank’s heart.  He had never heard his brother sound so hysterical before.   

“JOE,” his father tried using the “stern” voice that had kept him and Joe in line as children.  It was the voice that he used when he wanted them to know he had had enough of their foolishness.   

But it only seemed to antagonize him further and he almost flung Frank against the wall in his increasing frenzy, “JACK! NO!”  He screamed, and then he stared wide-eyed at Frank for a moment before going limp.  

Their mother had gone to the bathroom to get a cold cloth to put on Joe’s forehead while Fenton went to the phone to call Dr. Bates.  A few minutes later, Joe’s eyes flickered open again and he looked up into his big brother’s worried face.  

“What’s wrong?  And what is everyone doing in my room?”  he added, as he saw his mother and then his father.  

“Son, you had a nightmare – do you remember anything about it?”  

Frank saw a brief flicker of horror cross Joe’s face before he shook his head and denied knowing anything. The older boy glanced at his father and could tell by the look on his face that he was not buying it either.  

“Okay then,” said Fenton, wondering what demons were still haunting his youngest son.  Jack Turnbull was back in the maximum-security ward of the psychiatric hospital, so he was certain that couldn’t be it.  Jack was gone.  “When you’re ready to talk, you know where we are.  Dr. Bates does want to see you in the morning, just to make sure that you aren’t getting another infection.  Good night, son.”  

Fenton ushered his wife out of Joe’s bedroom, and they went downstairs.  Joe had given them all a bad fright with his nightmare, and he knew that it would be awhile before either of them would be able to sleep again. 

* * *

Fenton made his wife a cup of tea, and sat sipping thoughtfully on his own coffee, when ten minutes later Frank came down.  He smiled wanly when he saw that his father had already made an extra cup for him. “Is he asleep?”  

“Yes.”  

“The ER doctor suggested that Joe should get counseling,” Laura said, “Now I know he says he is all right…”  

“I agree,” said Fenton.  

Frank nodded in agreement as well.  “I don’t know why he won’t tell us.  Joe has said nothing about what happened to him, except very brief details…” Frank’s voice trailed off, as he was really bothered with how closed-off Joe had become.  

He and Joe had always been close, and he couldn’t understand this.  His parents knew that this really bothered Frank, as they always felt very fortunate with how close the brothers were.   

Laura took her son’s hand and gently held it.  

“Frank, sweetie – give him time.  I’m sure that Joe will talk to you, but we just need to give it time…” Frank hoped his mother was right, because he couldn’t bear how things were right now.

* * *

Joe awoke the next morning with a throbbing headache.  He knew it must be still early because he didn’t hear anyone up and around in the house.  His mother was always an early riser, usually around 6:30 , while their father lingered in bed until about 7:00 …but this morning everything was quiet.   

Although he was supposed to be on strict bed rest, Joe tossed off his covers and groaned involuntarily as he sat up and his back ached with the effort.  Tylenol 3 came to his mind as he walked towards the bathroom that he and Frank shared.   

He quickly downed two, and then stared at his reflection in the mirror.  His face still showed the signs of the abuse, but they were quickly fading.  He glanced down at his watch and saw the time: 7:10 am – why wasn’t anyone else up, he wondered.  

Quietly he opened the door to Frank’s room, and could make out the sleeping bundle that was his brother sprawled across his bed.  He stepped back into the washroom and into his own room.  He sat on the bed for a few minutes before realizing he was very hungry.  Yawning, he grabbed a loose-fitting T-shirt to throw on over his back, and went downstairs.   

The material against his skin still bothered him, but he hated the distressed look his mom always got whenever she saw his back.  He knew that while it was healing well, it was still pretty “gross.”   

That was the word he had used in the hospital the first time they had taken off the bandages and arranged a mirror so he would see just how bad the damage was – and it was bad.  Now Joe knew what a tenderized steak felt like….

* * *

Neither his mom nor dad were in the kitchen as he pushed open the door and made his way to the refrigerator to get a glass of orange juice.  Puzzled, he sat down for a few minutes and wondered why everyone was still in bed.  

Maybe I’m dreaming, he thought.  Joe was notorious for never wanting to get out of bed and was always the last one up.  Shaking his head, he decided that his back hurt too much for him to be dreaming.  He wished the Tylenol 3’s would start to kick in.  

Just then the kitchen door swished open and his mom came rushing in still wearing her housecoat., “Good morning sweetie, how are you feeling – and why aren’t you in bed?”  she asked as she started pulling open drawers and cupboards in an effort to start breakfast.   

“I’m fine.  I’ll go back and lie down after breakfast. I just needed to stretch my legs;” he stretched the truth slightly as he watched her in ‘food preparing mode.’  It brought back memories of being a child.  

He loved to sit in the kitchen and watch his mom cook.  She had this way of being able to do so many things at once, and make it look easy.  Already she had the coffee pot on, the kettle on its way to being boiled, bacon sizzling.  She paused and looked back at him. “Eggs or pancakes?”  

“Um, pancakes.”  

Without missing a step, she had the batter mixed and in the grill.  That used to be his favorite part of the morning, eggs or pancakes?  

A few minutes later with everything almost done, Laura stopped and got herself a glass of milk before turning her observant eyes onto her youngest son. “I haven’t seen you down here in a long time,” meaning up early enough to decide breakfast.  

Joe just shrugged and smiled.  “I don’t know…I just felt like not having what Frank wanted for a change.”  

“Hey,” Frank pretended to be indignant when he heard this but he was secretly pleased to see his brother up so early and, although he couldn’t believe it after what had happened last night, looking so well rested. “How are you feeling – and why are you out of bed?”  

Joe rolled his eyes.  After Frank asked, he was still going to be questioned by his father, and anyone else he saw today. “Fine, fine, fine.  Can I get a sign done up that says ‘Joe Hardy feels fine today and will go back to bed after breakfast’?”  

As if on cue, Fenton Hardy, missing the last comment, strode into the kitchen and seeing Joe there asked, “How are you feeling this morning?”  Joe groaned as his mother and brother laughed.  

“What did I say?”  queried Fenton as he saw Frank and his wife laughing.  

Ten minutes later the Hardys sat down for breakfast.  

For a few minutes there was light breakfast conversation, and then Fenton cleared his throat and looked at Joe. “Dr. Bates said he wanted to see you around 9:00 .”  

Joe looked up, puzzled. “Why? I only got home yesterday.  I thought I wouldn’t have to see him for a couple more days.”   

The older Hardys shared a look. “Joe,” asked Frank thoughtfully, “how did you sleep last night?”  

Joe started to mention that he slept very well, but then the nightmare came back to him in a flash of images.  His face paled. “Oh.”  

‘Sweetie, do you want to tell us about it?” his mother asked.   

Joe pushed away his plate and shook his head.  The food in his stomach was making him feel sick.  “No.”  His voice sounded tired.  “Can I be excused?  I think I’ll go back to bed now.”  

As he started to get up, his father’s voice stopped him.  “Joe, we think you need to talk to someone about this, and we want to help you – you need to talk about this.  If you don’t want to tell us, then I will ask Dr. Bates to recommend someone for you.”  

He waited to see Joe’s reaction, but Joe only paused for a moment before he went to his room.  Frank immediately got up and followed him.    

Laura started to get up too, but Fenton stopped her.  “No, honey – if Joe is going to talk to anyone, it’ll be Frank.  We have to let him try, at least”.

* * *

When Joe went to his room, he quickly closed the binds and lay on his bed, throwing his arm over his face, and started to sob.  He knew that Frank would not be too far behind him, and he was rewarded a few minutes later by the sound of his big brother coming in and sitting next to him on the bed.   

Frank did not say anything as his brother cried.  He desperately wanted to take Joe in his arms and make all the pain go away, but he knew that Joe had to get it out or it would eat him alive – even more then the insects.  Frank shuddered and tried to brush that image away.   

It seemed like forever before Joe regained his composure, and then he just lay on his bed not saying anything.   

Frank heard the door open and turned to see his parents come into the room.  He shook his head, indicating that Joe still had not said anything, and they turned to leave, but just then Joe started talking, and when he did, everyone froze in fear that he would shut himself up again.

* * *

“It’s not over…Jack told me that.  When I woke up in the cabin after Jack…after Jack…” he paused and took a deep breath, but kept his arm tight over his eyes, “after Jack finished with the belt, he told me that I wasn’t his son, but that I was a surrogate for the child that had been robbed from him.  Robbed…by death, if you can imagine that.   

“I…I…there was nothing I could do to stop him.  I hurt so much – I could hardly focus, let alone try and escape.  He said a whole bunch of other things too, but most of it I don’t remember because my mind kept drifting back and forth between the pain and Jack.   

“He…he left me tied to the tree to die…. Didn’t think you would find me in time because he left me…alone.  All I could hear was the sound of the woods closing around me, and the insects….oh my God…the insects…I still feel them crawling over my flesh….”  

By now Joe was shaking. and when he started talking about the bugs, he broke out into a cold sweat.  

Frank saw his mother start to move towards her distraught boy, but his father held her back – Joe needed to finish.  Frank knew how his mother felt; it took all his discipline to stop from reaching out to touch Joe, but he needed to hear the rest.  

It was a few minutes before Joe could speak again. “I don’t really know what happened much after that, but Jack did come back to me, once more.  I…I…I thought he was going to finish the job but instead he told me that you were coming for me and that I might…I just might….that I might just live a little longer.  But before he left he told me…no, he said….no, he…”  Joe was really starting to get upset now and Fenton nodded to Frank, who quickly took Joe’s hand to offer comfort.  

Joe felt cold and clammy but it did seem to help when he felt Frank’s warm, strong hand on his.  “He said that he would be back…”  

“No honey, he can’t get you anymore!”  Laura anguished, as she broke from her husband’s embrace, unable to see Joe tormented any longer.  She gathered him in her arms as he was shuddering and crying again. “He’s locked away where he can’t hurt you…or anyone…ever again!”  

At this Joe broke away from her and jumped up, extremely agitated, “NO!  Don’t say that – don’t ever say that.  As long as he is alive he can hurt me…hurt us!  Don’t you understand – he’s not finished yet!  He let me live! he let me live!…he let me live!…”  His body still weakened from his ordeal, and his mind exhausted from everything, the distraught teen collapsed.  

Frank grabbed his brother before he hit the floor, and with his father’s help moved Joe back onto his bed.  Laura’s face had turned white and she looked anxiously at her husband and older son.  “Oh my God,” was all she could say.

* * *

By the time Dr. Bates arrived a short time later, Joe had regained consciousness.  His head was still pounding and he felt emotionally drained, but he also did feel a little better.  Although it had been hard, he was relieved to have told his family about some of the stuff that was haunting him.   

But they still did not know all of it….

* * *

“Well, his back is still more inflamed then I would like, so I’m going to increase his antibiotics.”  Dr. Bates gave Fenton the new prescription.  “Other than that, he’s suffering from exhaustion and mental fatigue.  I want him on strict bed rest until this prescription runs out.  

“I’m also going to leave you with the number of a good friend of mine, Dr. Francis…” he gave Frank a quick grin, “I’m sending a referral over to him about Joe.  I know that he’s started to tell you about his ordeal, but I still think given what’s happened… that he also needs more professional help.  If nothing else, it will give him someone else…someone who he doesn’t have to eat with, to talk to.   

“Anyway,” he turned back to Joe, “I’m also leaving you a prescription for some mild sleeping pills.  I would like you to take one if you’re having trouble sleeping.  Now take care of yourself.”  

Mr. and Mrs. Hardy thanked their long-time family doctor and walked him to the door.  A few minutes later Frank and Joe heard their dad calling out, “Boys, I’m gonna drive your mom to the pharmacy; we’ll be back shortly. Frank!  Turn on the alarm when we leave.”  

 Frank quickly went downstairs to turn on the alarm, and when he came back he saw Joe starting to get out of bed.   “Hey you, get back in bed!”   

Joe started to protest but then he just rolled his eyes and sat back down.  “Frank?”  

“What?”  He realized it came out a lot harsher then he intended, because he was expecting Joe to start arguing with him about the bed rest.  He sat down beside his brother and pushed the blond hair out of Joe’s face, and said again, this time much softer, “What, baby brother?”  

“Jack is going to escape.”  Frank was alarmed.  But before he could protest, Joe shook his head sadly and looked into his brother’s dark brown eyes.  

God, how he looks like dad, he thought as he continued, “No, Jack told me that he would.  He’s crazy and said he wouldn’t mind killing whoever he needed to…to continue his…fun.”   

With that Joe closed his eyes and nodded off to sleep, leaving a stunned Frank open-mouthed.  He was still reeling from Joe’s words when he realized that his younger brother had fallen asleep.

* * *

An hour later, his parents were home.  

Hearing them downstairs, Frank quietly left his brother’s room and found his dad hanging, no draping his overcoat on the back of his office chair. It was one of Laura’s pet peeves with Fenton; he would do everything else, but he would never hang up his coat.  

His father’s face quickly turned grim when Frank told him what Joe had confessed before falling to sleep.  “Well, that helps explain some of Joe’s nightmares.  But it also presents us with a big problem.  It is not impossible for Jack to escape…hell as long as anyone is alive there’s always the possibility.  However, it is highly unlikely.  But by telling Joe that he would escape no matter what the cost…he’s still tormenting him….”  

Frank could almost see the wheels turning in his father’s head, trying to think of some way of giving his younger son some peace of mind.   Finally the older man straightened up and looked at Frank.  “The only thing I can think of is to warn the hospital that Jack is planning on trying to escape, and then try and make Joe feel safe, again.”  

Frank agreed, and their conversation was interrupted by the sound of Laura calling them for lunch.  She had already taken a tray up to Joe, but he was still sleeping so she placed it by his bed.

* * *

Over the next couple of weeks, things in the Hardy household slowly returned to normal.  Joe had physically recovered with only a few deep scars across his back as testimony to his ordeal, and now he even managed to sleep most nights without a sleeping pill.  His eyes got their sparkle back, and Jack was quickly becoming a distant memory.   

They only real lasting mental effect on him from his ordeal was he now had a horrific phobia of insects.  It was bad enough that when he saw a small spider running across the garage floor once, he was paralyzed with fear and it took him almost an hour to get his heart rate down.  He started to see Dr. Francis on a weekly basis, and they were trying to help him get past his bug phobia.   

The doctor had told Fenton that he doubted Joe would ever get over his fear, but at least they could help him get to the point that he could function without feeling panic at the sound of a mosquito.  

Their friends had been great and very supportive to the point that they ran “bug radar” for him.  And two months after the kidnapping, Joe was finally able to tolerate small insects without getting too upset.   

However, anything very big or hairy still caused him to break out in a cold sweat and have heart palpitations – he once confided to Biff that every time he saw a bug he could still feel them crawling over his skin and biting him to the point that he would start to scratch uncontrollably.   

“Hey Frank,” Joe called out, “Are you sure you don’t want to go to the movies with me and Vanessa?”  

“No thanks,” answered Frank, coming into the living room where Joe and Vanessa were standing.  “I still have to finish studying for my history exam on Monday.  You guys go and have a good time, though.”   

Shrugging, Joe gave his brother a sympathetic look before leaving with Vanessa in the van.   

Ten minutes later the phone rang, and both Frank and his father grabbed it at the same time.  Before Frank could hang up, he heard Chief Collig blurt out, “Jack Turnbull has escaped from the hospital!”  

“WHAT!” roared Fenton Hardy, but by then Frank was already pulling out his cell phone to call Joe.  From upstairs, Frank heard his brother’s phone ring – Damn it, Joe had forgotten his phone!  

A moment later, a white-faced Fenton came into the room.  ‘Did Joe leave yet?”  He knew that Frank had already heard.  

“Yeah, about ten minutes ago, but he didn’t take his phone.  What happened?”  Frank asked.  

“I don’t know the particulars, but Jack’s escaped from the hospital and Chief Collig is on his way over to give us more information.”  Fenton called out for his wife, “Laura!”  As he went to get her and break the news to her, he turned back to Frank. “Get your brother home, NOW!”   

Frank grabbed his coat and the keys to his motorcycle.  But just as he was opening the door to go outside, Jack Turnbull stepped in front of him, pushed him back into the living room and aimed a gun at him. “Well lookey here – if it isn’t my little Joey’s big brother!”

* * *

Fenton and Laura froze as they saw Frank sprawled on the floor at Jack’s feet, and the gun in Jack’s hand.  Before Fenton could do anything, Jack grabbed his son and hauled him to his feet.  He tossed Frank at them, and then motioned with his gun for them to go into the kitchen.   

“Tie them up,” he said as he tossed rope to Frank.  Reluctantly, Frank did so when his father nodded.  He tied his father and mother to the kitchen chairs.  Then Jack grabbed Frank and personally tied him up.   

Frank glared at the man with hatred – but then one more even horrid thought struck him:  Joe was right – Jack had come back.  

Jack smiled at them in satisfaction. “Now where is my boy?  Joseph…Daddy’s home.”  

“You’re not his father.”  Fenton could not keep the hatred from his voice.  Frank had never heard his father use that tone before, and it earned Fenton a hard slap across the face from Jack.  

“I don’t think I remember giving you permission to speak.  Let me explain the rules to you.  I came back to get my son.  I’m not leaving without him.  If anyone tries to stop me I’ll kill your Frankie-pooh, and then I’ll kill them.”  

Hearing a car in the driveway, Jack pulled his gun out of his waistband and went to the front door.  He opened the door and smiled very friendly-like when Chief Collig saw him.  Con Riley had arrived with him, and drew his gun, but before he could do anything, Jack hid behind the door.  He called out through the door, “If anyone tries to come in this house, I’ll kill the Hardys.”  

Collig called back to him, although he already knew the answer, “What do you want?”  

A chill went through Frank as he heard Jack yell back his answer, “MY SON!”

* * *

Both Fenton and Frank worked frantically on their ropes.  Frank had tied his father loosely, and just as Fenton was freeing himself, Jack came back into the kitchen, saw what was going on, and fired a shot at the detective.  

“Dad!”  

 “Fenton!”   

He heard his son and wife as he fell to the floor….  

“You killed him!”  Frank shouted, trying to get out of his bonds, but Jack just laughed and hoisted Fenton back into the chair and tied him up again.  

“Now where was I…oh yeah – bring me Joe.  One Hardy for three Hardys…sounds like a deal to me!”  he shouted out the window.   

A few minutes later the phone rang, and Jack picked it up. “Hello?” he said in a sweet voice.

* * *

Joe couldn’t get past a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach.  He reached for his cell phone to make sure everything was all right at home when he realized that he had left it in his room. He groaned but then remembered that Vanessa had hers!  

He was just about to ask her to borrow it when he heard it go off.  Startled, and ignoring the angry glare of the other moviegoers, she quickly answered it, “Hello?  Yes Officer Riley, he is here…”  

Shrugging, she handed the phone to Joe as his eyes narrowed in concern. “Hi this is Joe.”   

A second later, Joe Hardy and Vanessa Bender raced from the theatre.  He still had Vanessa’s phone in his hand and as they jumped into the van, Joe dialed home.   

“Hello?”  When Joe heard the voice on the other end of the phone, he slammed on the brakes, pulling over to the side of the road at the same time.  He jumped out of the van and barely made it out before he started throwing up!   

The voice was from his nightmares – Jack was in his house!  

He could hear Jack laughing at him and he fought the rest of the nausea; he needed to get home – he didn’t have time to be sick right now.

* * *

“Jack,” he said hoarsely, and for some reason his back began to ache again.  

“Well son, it’s so good of you to call.  I hear you’re not feeling too well.  Oh too bad, neither is your father…or your brother…or even your mother.”  His gaze went from Hardy to Hardy as he relished in seeing their hatred glaring back, “and I know those three guards I killed coming to see you are probably not feeling too well either!”  

“If you hurt them…”  

Jack’s mocking laughter cut Joe off.  

“You’re too late boy – but if you hurry home now, like a good little son, then maybe there will still be someone here to see you.  NOW!”  Jack slammed down the phone.  

Vanessa drove while Joe slumped in the passenger seat, his mind racing.  He had no choice; he knew what he needed to do.

* * *

Jack looked at the family and smiled, “Well in case you hadn’t guessed, that was Joseph and he’s on his way home.”  

“What are you going to do?”  asked Laura fearfully, although she did not really want to know.  

“Hmmm…that’s a good question, Laura.”  He moved closer to her and looked directly into her face to see her reaction.  “Well things will be a bit more difficult with the police here…difficult yes…but also much more fun….”   

He pulled out a chair and sat down at the table with the family, opposite to Laura, and continued, “See here’s the kicker – I’m going to have my cake and eat it too.  When Joe comes, he and I are gonna spend a little quality father-and-son time together….Everything after that will be played by ear.  I won’t kill you all – I do need someone to remember everything and to live with everything.  So I probably won’t kill you.  

“Hmmm…in fact, no I don’t think I will at all – but you never know… sometimes I scare myself once I get going.  But you know what the real kicker is….Laura…Frankie?”  

He jumped up and glanced out the window.  “I’m never going back to the hospital again and today I’m going to die a happy man!”

* * *

Joe and Vanessa drove up and parked behind the police cars.  Collig and Riley came over to them, and stopped Joe from going in the house.  

“If you go in there, it’ll be all over for them!”  Collig said as he held the teen’s arm tightly.  

Joe looked at him, confused, “If I don’t go in there… he’ll kill them!”  

“No,” the Chief shook his head.  

He couldn’t let Joe go into that house, it would be signing his death warrant and, although he liked to be gruff and huff and puff around them, he was actually very fond of the brothers, and thought about them like they were his own.  

“It’s you he wants – as long as you stay out here… we have some power.”   

He grabbed Joe’s chin, forcing him to look straight at him. “Joe, you have to have faith in your family…your father and Frank will be planning something; we just need to wait for their cue and take action.”  

Joe didn’t look convinced, but then Con cut in, “I’ve known your father for a long time.  We just have to give him a chance….”  

Finally Joe nodded and allowed himself to be seated in a squad car.

* * *

“What to do first…” Jack seemed to be talking to himself.   

Out of the corner of his eye, Frank was relieved to see that his father had regained consciousness.  

The madman continued, “I’ll need to restrain him in such a way that he’s not going anywhere but at the same time allow me sufficient working surface…hmmm.  I need a good knife – Did I ever tell you that my brother is a doctor?” he turned to Frank.  

“Yeah, he used to work as an OB but now he’s a surgeon – well actually now he’s serving time in the state pen for kidnapping…but I think you might know something about that.  Hey now… there’s an idea….I’ve always wondered what makes a man tick!  Now wouldn’t that be fun?  Joseph’s heart on a platter….” 

This time he addressed Laura, and Frank realized that this man had truly lost it – he was beyond being crazy, he was truly mad.

* * *

Fenton Hardy had actually never lost consciousness.  The bullet had grazed his forehead and it smarted a lot, but he used it as an excuse to get Jack to lower his guard, and it had worked.  Thinking that Fenton was unconscious when he tied him up gave him the chance to flex his muscles.   

Now as Jack went on his tirade, Fenton was quietly undoing his ropes.  He only hoped that Joe would not come in before he was ready…for that he silently prayed, Ezra keep my son away…

* * *

Frank was also working on his ropes, but it was getting harder and harder to concentrate as he heard Jack talking about how he was planning to see how long Joe could last once he started to cut his heart out.   

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his mother beginning to look sick.  The worst part wasn’t knowing that if they didn’t stop him…he would do it, but the knowledge that Joe would let him do that, if it meant saving his family.

* * *

Joe knew he didn’t have much time. 

 

He waited until the officers were distracted, and then slowly moved from the cruiser and towards the back of the house.  He heard Con and Collig shout his name, but they couldn’t reach him before he put his hand on the kitchen door, turned it and walked in.

* * *

Fenton, Frank and Laura turned white when they saw Joe come into the kitchen.  Time had run out!

* * *

“Damn it!  Tell the SWAT team to take their first shot – we need him down NOW!” Chief Collig was furious with Joe for disobeying him, but he was even more furious with himself for not handcuffing the kid to the car or something.   

He should have known that Joe would go in.  

Joe followed his heart, and Chief Ezra Collig prayed that this time it would not cost him his life.  

“And where is Con Riley?” he demanded as he turned back to tell him something, but the younger man was gone. 

* * *

“Well, well, well, Joseph, I was wondering when you’d get here.  Come and give your daddy a big hug.”  Frank saw the pure terror in Joe’s eyes, but somehow Joe kept it out of his voice, which didn’t even shake.  

 “You’re not my father.”  

Jack looked amused.  “And why is that?  Because I told you I wasn’t.  Son, don’t always trust everything you’re told.  Look at me…look at you….we’re the same.”  Somehow his deluded mind skipped over the details of hair, eye or skin coloring.  

But Joe only shook his head sadly, “No Jack, we are nothing alike.”  

With that, Joe Hardy brought his hand up and pointed a gun at him.

* * *

Con Riley raced back to Chief Collig, “He took my gun!”  And then they both looked at the house as a shot rang out.  

“All units close in!” shouted the Chief, as he was already running.

* * *

Time had run out – the same thought ran through both Fenton and Frank’s minds as they jumped up from their chairs at the same time.  

Fenton tackled Jack while Frank pushed Joe out of the way.  As he did, the gun went off and the bullet flew harmlessly into the ceiling.  Joe knocked his head against the counter as he fell, and went limp in Frank’s arms.  

Gently lowering his brother to the floor, Frank was just preparing to help his dad when Con Riley, Chief Collig and a flurry of officers stormed the kitchen.   

“NO!” yelled Jack, and with a burst of maniacal strength he threw everyone off and before they could stop him he lunged at Joe….  

Frank threw himself over his unconscious brother, but then another shot rang out, and Jack Turnbull dropped to the floor, blood coming out of a gaping hole in his forehead.  

Laura Hardy stood holding Con Riley’s smoking gun. “No one hurts my family,” was all she said.

* * *

When Joe opened his eyes, he was expecting to see angels, but instead he saw the concerned brown eyes of his older brother.  He struggled to sit up but then a wave of dizziness hit him and he sank back down.  

“Welcome back, kiddo,” Frank smiled, “You had me worried for a minute.”   

For a second Joe didn’t remember what had happened, but then it all came flooding back and he gasped, “Jack!”   

Frank gently kept him from trying to get up again.  

“Easy son,” his father was now standing over him, relieved to see Joe’s vibrant blue eyes look up at him.  “It’s over now.  Jack’s dead.”  

Joe gulped and stared back at him as he turned even paler and gasped, “I killed him?”  He felt sick, as the last thing he remembered was pointing Con’s gun at Jack.  

The younger boy felt like he was going to lose consciousness again, as Frank shook his head. “No baby brother, you didn’t kill him.”  

“No, you didn’t,” reinforced his father.  

Fenton smiled proudly at his wife as she brought some cold water for Joe to sip on. “Your mother saved us all.”  

Laura smiled back at him before sitting down next to him.  “And I would do it a million more times if I had to…for you, baby.”   

Unbeknownst to either her husband or older son, Laura Hardy had also gotten her hands free.  And seeing the gun fall out of Joe’s hand, she had grabbed it, to keep Jack from getting it.   

She never hesitated for a moment when the time came – she was actually kind of relieved.  Now that Jack was dead, maybe Joe could finally move on with his life….  

“In this family, getting out of bonds is a good skill to know,” she had joked to the officer who had taken her statement.

* * *

“You’re not sad that it’s me?  That I’m not your daughter?”  Joe seemed confused, but Laura shook her head and stroked his face gently.  

 “Sweetie…why would I want any daughter…when I could have you?  When Dr. Blair said that I had lost a daughter, of course I was shocked.  But just shocked, baby – I never for a second regretted you.  Even though what he had said was possible, I knew it wasn’t true.  I knew it in my heart,” she touched her chest as her eyes shone with tears.  

 “Joseph, even if it were true, it would never change how we feel about you – NEVER!”   

Both Frank and Fenton nodded vehemently as Frank added, “Baby brother, you never stop caring for someone, even if you find out that your blood doesn’t flow through their veins.  Family is more then birthright, family is forever!”  

Deciding that now was the perfect opportunity, Fenton Hardy reached into his pocket and pulled out the wrinkled envelope that had arrived that same morning, and he handed it to Joe.  Joe looked at his father questioningly as he saw the return address was from Bayport Genetics Laboratories.  

“Joe I was afraid that you might question who you are one day… so when you were in the hospital I authorized them to do DNA testing on you.  To prove who you are.”  

Frank gasped, as he hadn’t known what his parents had done, and his father continued, “I never opened it because whatever it says in there doesn’t matter to me – you are my son.”  

Joe fingered the envelope and looked at his parents. They smiled at him and his mother said, “It’s up to you Joe – but no matter what, you will always be our Joe Hardy.”  

Tears ran down his cheeks as he whispered, “But…what if it is true…and there was a baby girl – what about her?”   

Fenton stroked Joe’s cheek gently.  “Son, there is a plot in the cemetery…that contains the tormented body of Amelia Turnbull.  In Amelia’s arms there is cradled the body of an infant girl.  No matter what the results are…I would never take that comfort from Amelia.  She suffered enough in life.  If we can give her someone to hold onto into eternity…it was worth it for her sacrifice to us now.  It’s all up to you.”  

Chief Collig hated to interrupt, but he quickly signaled to Fenton that they were done here.

* * *

Joe was still fingering the envelope when the last squad car backed out of the driveway and the family was once again left alone.   

He didn’t know if he was strong enough for the truth.  

Suddenly, he felt a sharp prick and looked down at his finger.  He had gotten a paper cut from the envelope!   

Sucking on his finger he took a long hard look at his family… and for the first time since the whole ordeal had began, he saw with clarity.  

Getting up… ignoring the protests of his family, he walked over to the fireplace and without a second look he tossed the envelope into the fire.  

Instantly he was engulfed in the loving embrace of his family and knew he was home.   

Joe did not need a piece of paper to tell him whether or not he was a Hardy – he was.

 

The end